We Share The Same Skies
by EatYourFudge
Summary: Kyp and Jaina test the limits of friendship. A series of 3 AU vignettes. Part 3 is up! Excerpt: "Jaina let her head rest against the wall, and let her eyes drift close. Pain was nothing new. Pain was starting to become comfortable." Concrit welcome!
1. Part 1: This town has got you down

A/N: I posted this on tf.n about a month ago, but I thought I'd try it over here as well. This is my first Star Wars fic. I think this will be a series of 5 stand-alone vignettes (I've already written one more, which I'll put up sometime next week) but I'm open to suggestions. I try to limit myself to 500 words or less, sort of a quality over quantity thing, so each chapter will be a fairly short but hopefully poignant snapshot of an AU K/J friendship or relationship.

Concrit would be very helpful and appreciated. I would be interested to know what you all think of the characterisation, style, genre, tone, etc.

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Part 1: This town has got you down…

Kyp could feel the waves of nausea rolling through her body though their Force bond. It was unpleasant for him; it must be almost unbearable for her to be constantly on the verge of losing a battle with her own gag reflex and volatile stomach. He tried to send an apology through their bond, but she cut him off halfway through. _It's okay, Kyp. We knew this could happen. _Yes, they knew of the possible side-effects, but that certainly didn't mean that they were looking forward to this part of the journey.

Clighal had gone above and beyond her duty as a healer in assisting them: helping Jaina with her problem, and helping Kyp help Jaina. The medical records were confidential, and they managed to bypass protocol and nosy medics which gave Jaina the privacy that she craved.

As soon as Kyp could get out of the meeting with Master Skywalker, he swung by his office and dropped off the stack of datapads. The walk to Jaina's quarters was short; he entered the correct code into the panel outside the door and stepped inside the room just enough so that the door swing shut behind him.

"You didn't have to come, I'll be alright." She was sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at the open door to the refresher. She didn't turn to look at him, and he couldn't see her eyes.

He spoke quietly, hesitantly trying to gauge whether or not she wanted him to stay now that he was already there. "I wanted to."

"You didn't have to," she repeated.

"I know." Kyp decided that the silence was comfortable and stood his ground, waiting for her to make the next move.

Jaina dropped her gaze to the toes of her combat boots, studying the shine. "I wish this part of it would go by faster. When will it get better?"

"Clighal said that it might take a couple of weeks for it to blow over." He paused, waiting for her reaction.

It never came. Three years ago, she would have thrown a fit at being grounded for that long.

"If I had known you would react this violently to the medication, I would never have suggested it." Kyp's regret rang through their bond, and she winced at his choice of words.

"Call it what it is, Kyp. Be honest with me. I don't want to be coddled." She was looking at her hands now, inspecting her bitten-off fingernails, not wanting to look at him, and not wanting him to see her eyes looking so lifeless.

"Anti-depressants take time to kick in, Jay. When they do, and when the nausea wears off, you can start to function normally again. You can start to fly again. And you can start to deal with some of the demons that you've been carrying around." He moved closer, and sat down on the bed next to her. "It's not a panacea, but it's a start."


	2. Part 2: A strange union

Part 2: A strange union…

Jaina caught the tail-end of the conversation between the two Jedi Masters as they rounded the corner and paused before heading in opposite directions. Their words were cordial, but they were both broadcasting negative feelings through the Force; the strength of Luke's frustration and Kyp's irritation made Jaina wince before she quickly built up a barrier in her mind.

Kyp was halfway to his quarters before she caught up with him.

"So you're not even going to consider it?"

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "I did."

They continued on into his bedroom and Jaina leaned back against the now-closed door.

"How can you expect the next generation of Knights to be worth anything if they aren't trained properly?"

"They will be. . ."

"By someone other than you." Jaina finished his thought in a dull tone, making her disapproval clear. "I just thought that you were trying to be a team player for once, Durron."

"That's rich coming from you, kid."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Come on, Jaina. Do you honestly think you were treated like every other Force-sensitive child in the galaxy? At the Academy, in the military, just walking down the street? Did you ever think that your uncle's influence might have something to do with it, or maybe your mother's political connections, or your father's name?"

"Han Solo is twice the man you will ever be." She knew his weak spot: the one man in the galaxy that he admired and respected as a son would a father. She was surprised to hear his quick retort, which was reflexive, automatic and sincere.

"Do you think I don't know that?"

They stared at each other for several seconds, unwilling or unable to concede to the other. Finally, Jaina's eyes flickered in recognition, and her posture visibly relaxed.

"This is about Miko," she stated simply.

He swore and turned away, examining the distance to the doorway and calculating the amount of time it would take him to enter in the unlock code and escape Jaina's probing questions.

"This isn't about Uncle Luke, or my father, or me, or even the future of the Jedi Order. You don't want to take on an apprentice because you feel responsible for Miko's death."

"Well, I am. . ."

"No, you're not!" She was yelling now, yelling at him, trying to dissolve the self-doubt that had festered for years under a confident facade.

"Miko sacrificed himself for Jacen and Danni, who in turn have saved many, many lives. He died an honourable death. His sacrifice is not only a reflection of his character, it's a reflection of your character. Yes, you, Kyp Durron, the Destroyer of Worlds! You taught him to put what he learned at the Academy into practise, and you taught about what it means to be a Jedi, what it means to be a man."

Kyp swore again, and pushed past her to punch in the emergency unlock code.

Jaina let him leave.

She knew he wouldn't go far.


	3. Part 3: We share the same skies

A/N: Another instalment! This one's a bit more graphic that the others. I tried to leave the ending open to interpretation as K/J friendship or romance, whichever you prefer.

Concrit is very much appreciated. It's always nice to know what reader think, even if it's a simple "cool" or "you suck at writing". Love it, hate it... I've got thick skin.

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Part 3: We share the same skies…

Jaina stripped off her protective jumpsuit, wincing as damp air slammed against sweat-soaked skin. Two short steps to the left, her suit joined the growing pile near the door. Four steps to the right, and she was already halfway to her assigned bunk. Five steps. Six. Seven. Almost there.

A hand on her shoulder pulled her back. She was manoeuvred into the corner of the room, where the fading ceiling lights couldn't reach.

A hand slipped under her thin shirt. Fingers travelled up her torso and came to rest over her heart. Callused fingertips traced the raw skin with surprising elegance, Jaina's assailant quietly marvelled at the result of many similar encounters over the past five months. The hand quickly turned violent; an unnaturally sharp fingernail dug into the edge of the intricate design and lengthened the cut.

Jaina let her head rest against the wall, and let her eyes drift close. Pain was nothing new. Pain was starting to become comfortable.

"Doesn't hurt as much as it did at first, huh kid?" The voice was soft and low. "What, you're not gonna talk ta me? You had plenty ta say at the start."

Jaina winced as she remembered the beginning of this ritual, the bruises and broken bones that had yet to completely heal.

"Don't matter. This beaut' speaks for itself." He made one more precise cut, and then used the shirt to mop up some of the blood. "And what'll it say?"

"That I belong to you."

"That's right, kid." He tousled her hair and left her leaning against the wall for support.

* * *

Jaina was finally released from the nightmare. She unwound herself from the bedclothes carefully. The sudden knock at the door startled her, even causing her hands to shake for several seconds before she reminded herself that it was just a dream. And it wasn't even her dream. She shouldn't have to deal with it. It shouldn't be her problem, too.

But now it was.

She opened the door for Kyp, not bothering to turn her bedroom lights on before they sat next to each other on the edge of the mattress.

He spoke first.

"I can take it, if you want me to. Your memory of it, I mean. I can take away the last hour, and you would never remember, unless it happened again, but I'm sure I can talk to Luke about this . . . problem. We could work on weakening our bond, and it won't happen again."

He waited for her to say something, to agree to the memory-wipe, to want to go back to the way that it was before.

She didn't say anything. She stood up slowly, turned to face him, and cautiously began to take off his sleep shirt. She needed proof that it was real, that he had actually been through what she had experienced in their shared dream. The scars were bright red against pale skin, the crude cuts a permanent reminder of Kessel.

Eventually they both slept without dreaming.


End file.
